Painted Bed Panel with Swallow and Botanicals

This exquisitely painted panel, painted around 1900 in the port city of Canton (today called Guangzhou), was inset into the sides of an enclosed canopy bed. Painted on natural pinewood, the image is of a swallow among showy chrysanthemums and tiny bamboo blooms. The Chinese characters that accompany the scene roughly translate to “which is the most beautiful.” The meaning is open to interpretation. Does it refer to the swallow, an auspicious symbol of spring and blessings to come or the chrysanthemums and the bamboo blossoms, which are both very hearty, representing longevity and virtue in the face of adversity?